A Texas jury on Tuesday found Karmelo Anthony guilty of murder in the fatal stabbing of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf at a Frisco high school track meet last year, concluding a closely watched trial that drew national attention over questions of race, self-defense and school safety.
The Collin County jury deliberated for about three hours before returning its unanimous verdict. The same jury will now decide Anthony’s sentence. Under Texas law, a murder conviction is punishable by five to 99 years in state prison.
Before the judge and jury entered the courtroom, Anthony’s attorney, Mike Howard, had his arm around Anthony, who looked tense. Austin Metcalf’s parents were pulled aside and reminded not to show any public emotion when the verdict was announced. Friends of Metcalf were in the courtroom, as well as his twin brother, Hunter, attending for the first time — Hunter had not been allowed in the courtroom as he was on the witness list, though he did not testify. The jury did not look at Anthony as they walked in.
The case stems from a confrontation at Kuykendall Stadium in Frisco on April 2, 2025, where Anthony, then a student at Frisco Centennial High School, and Metcalf, a student-athlete at Frisco Memorial High School, clashed under a team tent where athletes had gathered during inclement weather. The altercation ended when Metcalf was stabbed in the chest. Medical examiner testimony at trial revealed that Metcalf had been stabbed through the heart, with a two-inch wound described as “gaping.”
Prosecutors characterized the stabbing as a provoked, unjustified “sneak attack” inside the team tent, while the defense argued it was a split-second act of self-defense born of fear and chaos. Anthony did not testify in his own defense.
Before deliberations began, Judge John Roach Jr. ruled that jurors could also consider a manslaughter charge in addition to murder. The jury ultimately returned the more serious verdict.
The trial drew scrutiny over jury composition, with no Black jurors selected to serve, according to WFAA. Cameras were not permitted in the courtroom, and seating for the public was limited. The case had sparked intense national attention fueled by social media debate centered on the races of the two young men, public protests, online threats and allegations of doxxing involving people connected to the proceedings.
Anthony, now 19, was convicted in Collin County District Court in McKinney. The sentencing phase, to be decided by the same jury, was expected to begin promptly given the speed of deliberations.
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